Count Vincent of Naples

Count Vincent of Naples (1520-1557) was a minor Neapolitan noble who took part in a 1557 conspiracy to kidnap the sons of King Henry II of France to avenge the death of his own son in French captivity during the Italian War of 1551-59. His men took control of the Valois royal castle, but most of them were poisoned by Queen Catherine de Medici, while Vincent himself was killed by Mary, Queen of Scots.

Biography
Vincent was born in Naples in 1520 to a minor noble family, and he had a son with his wife before his wife died of illness and his son Roberto was captured by King Henry II of France during the Italian War of 1551-59. Roberto was held prisoner for eight months before Vincent paid 1,500 ducats for his release; however, Roberto died of illness contracted during his painful stay in French captivity, leaving Vincent with a strong hatred for France. In 1557, after King Henry II left Paris with an army to quell village unrest in Lorraine, Count Vincent and a company of retainers visited Queen Catherine de Medici and Prince Francis at the royal castle, and, as Vincent had wine with the royals and told them of his son's death, his guards seized control of the castle. He demanded a large ransom as well as taking Francis as a hostage, and he later decided to take Princes Charles and Henry as hostages as well. Catherine secretly poisoned the gold which was to be given to the Neapolitans as ransom money, causing Vincent and his men to fall ill. Vincent then attempted to rape Mary, Queen of Scots, but she fatally stabbed him in the neck with a fork, and he bled to death, ending his plot.